Why a group of sharks tested positive for cocaine in Brazil

An investigation determined that a group of 13 the Sharks Pointy noses have tested positive for cocaine in Brazil more precisely in the coastal waters of Rio de Janeiro.

The study was carried out by scientists from the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation and determined that They had this drug in both their liver and muscle tissue. .

The authors stated that In this latter area, they had levels about three times higher than in the said organ .

Similarly, they assured that Compared to men, women had higher concentrations of this substance. in your muscle tissue.

The work was published in the academic journal Total Environmental Science .

The foundation’s ecotoxicologist and co-author of the study, Enrico Mendes Saggioro, explained to cnn that heCocaine pollutes the sea due to wastewater discharge from humans who consume the drug .

Added to this are the illegal laboratory waste who produce it.

Research assures that about 22% of cocaine users live in South America, while Brazil is the second largest market in the region .

They also cite data that claims that this phenomenon coincides with “inadequate wastewater treatment infrastructure” .

Scientists from the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation warn that Increased levels of cocaine found in sea .

Although they do not know precisely what the damage to the sharks’ health might be, they said that Previous studies have found negative effects on fish and other underwater animals .

They stressed in a statement that “Exposure is likely to have deleterious physiological effects on sharks” .

“Cocaine targets the brain and Hyperactive and erratic behavior has been observed in other animals “, they stressed.

Foundation biologist and study co-author Rachel Ann Hauser-Davis said: It is “very likely” that other living beings on which they feed are also contaminated by cocaine. the Sharks.

After the recent discovery, They hope to analyze other shark species, in addition to “evaluating migratory fish such as mullet.” .

This with the aim of “verifying whether migratory behaviors affect the accumulation of cocaine,” Mendes Saggioro said.

Behavioral ecologist from the Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague, Pavel Horky, explained to the aforementioned media that “Fish are susceptible to the adverse effects of many neurologically active drugs, from alcohol to cocaine.” .

This may prompt them to develop a “drug addiction linked to the dopamine reward pathway, similar to how humans do it” .

Previously, in 2021, Horky conducted research that found that brown trout can become addicted to methamphetamine when it accumulates in waterways.